Bone removal instrument

ABSTRACT

Improved spinal instruments are provided. In particular, the present application relates to an improved rongeur that allows for multiple bites of bone to be performed in a patient before removing the rongeur from the patient. The rongeur includes a lower shaft and an upper shaft slidable relative to the lower shaft. The lower shaft and upper shaft form a jaw mechanism that can take multiple bites of bone, which can be deposited in a storage cavity formed in the upper shaft. To assist in removing the bone from within the storage cavity, an internal plunger mechanism can be provided that is actuated by a finger hold. In addition, at least portions of the upper shaft are detachable from the lower shaft such that the upper shaft can be thoroughly cleaned and re-used if desired.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present application generally relates to surgical instruments, andmore particularly, to instruments for removing bone material.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

During spinal surgeries, a rongeur can be used to remove bone.Typically, rongeurs may be designed to take a single bite of bone at atime. After each bite, the rongeur is taken out of a surgical site toretrieve the bone material. Removing the rongeur out of the body aftereach bite is inefficient and increases the risk of contamination to thepatient. Furthermore, rongeurs are often difficult to clean.

Thus, there remains a need for an improved rongeur that has increasedefficiency, cleanliness and provides greater safety to a patient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In some embodiments, a rongeur is provided comprising a handle; a lowershaft operably connected to the handle; and an upper shaft slidablerelative to the lower shaft, wherein the upper shaft includes aninternal storage cavity for receiving bone tissue material and aninternal plunger mechanism configured to push out bone tissue materialfrom the internal storage cavity.

In other embodiments, a rongeur is provided including a handle; a lowershaft operably connected to the handle; and an upper shaft slidablerelative to the lower shaft, wherein the upper shaft includes aninternal storage cavity and an internal plunger mechanism positionednear a proximal portion of the upper shaft, wherein the handle and theinternal plunger mechanism are capable of one-handed operation.

In other embodiments, a method is provided comprising forming anincision in a body of a patient; inserting a rongeur through theincision, wherein the rongeur includes a jaw mechanism formed by a lowershaft and an upper shaft, and wherein the upper shaft includes a storagecavity adjacent an internal plunger mechanism; using the jaw mechanismto take two or more bites out of a bone, wherein at least some bonetissue from the bone is deposited in the storage cavity; removing therongeur from the body of the patient; and utilizing the internal plungermechanism to push out and expel bone tissue material within the storagecavity in the upper shaft.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of a rongeur according to some embodiments of thepresent application.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a rongeur according to someembodiments of the present application.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a rongeur with upper shaft having storagecavity detached according to some embodiments of the presentapplication.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS

Detailed embodiments of the invention are disclosed herein; however, itis to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplaryof the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore,specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not tobe interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and asa representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variouslyemploy the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailedstructure.

The present application generally relates to surgical instruments, andin particular, to improved rongeurs. The improved rongeurs include astorage cavity that can accommodate bone tissue material from multiplebites of bone, thereby reducing the need to remove the rongeur from thepatient's body after each bite of bone. The improved rongeur alsoadvantageously provides a simple mechanism that dislodges and expels anybone tissue material from the storage cavity. Advantageously, thestorage cavity of the improved rongeur is capable of being detached andthoroughly cleaned.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a rongeur according to some embodiments of thepresent application. The rongeur 10 comprises a lower shaft 13 and anupper shaft 42, wherein at least a portion of the upper shaft can beremovably attached to the lower shaft 13 for easy cleaning. The uppershaft 42 comprises a storage cavity 60 (shown in FIG. 2) that can storebone material from multiple bites of bone.

A handle 20 is operably connected to a proximal portion of the lowershaft 13. The handle 20 comprises a front actuating portion 23 and aback portion 22. Movement of the front actuating portion 23 relative tothe back portion 22 (e.g., by exerting a pulling force on the actuatingportion 23) of the handle 20 moves the upper shaft 42 relative to thelower shaft 13 (or the lower shaft 13 relative to the upper shaft 42),thereby providing a jaw mechanism that can help remove bone tissuematerial, as will be discussed further below.

The lower shaft 13 further comprises a raised distal portion 17extending upwardly from the shaft 13. The raised distal portion 17 canserve as one end of a jaw mechanism designed to bite off and remove bonetissue material, with the distal portion 49 of the upper shaft 42serving as the other end. When the rongeur bites off bone tissuematerial from a bone, the material collects in the bone channel 51 thatis formed in between the jaw mechanism. As additional bone tissuematerial is collected in the channel 51, the material will press againstthe inner wall of the raised distal portion 17 and will collect in thestorage cavity 60, as discussed further below.

The upper shaft 42 of the rongeur is slidably connected with the lowershaft 13. The upper shaft 42 includes a distal portion 49 that serves asone part of a jaw mechanism for biting off and removing bone material.In some embodiments, the distal portion 49 of the upper shaft is angledor shaped like a blade to assist in the removal of bone tissue material.

The upper shaft 42 also includes an opening adjacent its distal portion49 that opens to a storage cavity 60 (shown in FIG. 2) contained thereinfor collecting bone tissue material. In some embodiments, the storagecavity 60 has a cross-section in the shape of a circle, or square, orrectangle. In some embodiments, the storage cavity has a rectangularcross-section and has a width of between about 4 mm to 8 mm, a height ofbetween about 1 mm to 5 mm, and a length of between about 36 mm to about44 mm. In some embodiments, the storage cavity 60 has a volume ofbetween about 600 cubic mm to 900 cubic mm, or of about 700 cubic cc.These dimensions provide adequate space to collect bone tissue material,such that multiple bites of bone tissue material can take place beforeremoving the rongeur out of a patient's body. One skilled in the artwill appreciate, however, that the storage cavity is not limited tothese particular shapes or sizes, and that other designs and dimensionsare also possible.

Advantageously, due to the addition of the storage cavity 60, it ispossible to take multiple bites of bone using the jaw mechanism formedby the distal portion 17 of the lower shaft and the distal portion 49 ofthe upper shaft before having to take the rongeur out of the body. Insome embodiments, two, three, four, five or more bites of bone can occurbefore removing the rongeur out of the body. After multiple bites areperformed, the rongeur can be removed from the body and the bone tissuematerial in the storage cavity can be expelled. The addition of thestorage cavity 60 thus increases the efficiency of a surgery, and alsoreduces the risk of contamination by minimizing the amount of exposureof the instrument outside of the patient.

In some embodiments, the upper shaft 42 also includes a slidableinternal plunger 52. The distal end of the slidable internal plunger 52is positioned adjacent to the storage cavity 60. Advantageously, theslidable internal plunger 52 is configured to easily push out anddischarge any bone tissue material out of the storage cavity 60. Toconveniently operate the slidable internal plunger 52, the upper shaft42 also includes a finger trigger or hold 45 that can move in a forwardand backward, or proximal and distal, direction along a channel 47. Insome embodiments, the channel 47 can align with the longitudinal axis ofthe upper shaft 42. In one example, if the storage cavity 60 is filledwith bone tissue material, the slidable internal plunger 52 can bepushed forwardly using a single finger to push outward the slidableinternal plunger 52 into the storage cavity 60, thereby helping to pushout any bone tissue material from the storage cavity 60. Advantageously,the instrument is configured for one-handed operation, such that one canhold the instrument (e.g., via handle 20) and still operate the fingerhold 45 to push out bone material from the storage cavity 60.

The upper shaft 42 can be coupled to the lower shaft 13 using a lockingmechanism. In some embodiments, the locking mechanism 25 comprises aknob that can be rotated to detach portions of the upper shaft 42 fromthe bottom shaft 13. Optionally, a locking latch 26 (shown in FIG. 2)can also be provided to secure the upper shaft 42 and the bottom shaft13. While the locking mechanism 25 helps to secure the upper shaft 42 tothe lower shaft 13, the locking mechanism also advantageously provides asimple means for decoupling or detaching portions of the upper shaft 42from the lower shaft 13. By detaching the upper shaft 42 from the lowershaft 13, portions of the upper shaft can be easily cleaned, such thatthe component can be reused if desired. In some embodiments, once theupper shaft 42 is cleaned, detached portions of the upper shaft 42 canbe re-attached to the lower shaft 13 so that it can be re-used to biteand store more bone tissue material. In FIG. 3, it is illustrated thatthe entire upper shaft 42 is completely detachable from the lower shaft13, in other embodiments, only a portion of the upper shaft 42 isdetachable from the lower shaft 13. For example, in some embodiments,the proximal portion of the upper shaft 42 may still be connected to thelower shaft 13 via a hinge mechanism upon unlocking the lockingmechanism.

Methods of Use

Various methods can be provided that utilize the rongeurs describedabove. In some embodiments, the application encompasses methods fortreating a subject utilizing an improved rongeur comprising:

a. forming an incision in a body of a patient;

b. inserting a rongeur through the incision, wherein the rongeurincludes a jaw mechanism formed by a lower shaft and an upper shaft, andwherein the upper shaft includes a storage cavity adjacent an internalplunger mechanism for dislodging bone tissue material from the storagecavity;

c. removing bone tissue material via the jaw mechanism by taking two ormore bites (e.g., three, four, five, or more) out of a bone, wherein atleast some of the bone tissue material is deposited within the storagecavity;

d. removing the rongeur from the body of the patient;

e. utilizing the internal plunger mechanism to expel and dispose of anybone tissue material within the storage cavity of the upper shaft;

The process can be repeated multiple times until a desired amount ofbone tissue material is removed from the patient. Once the surgicalprocess is completed and when the rongeur needs to be cleaned, therongeur can be cleaned by detaching the upper shaft including thestorage cavity from the lower shaft of the rongeur, cleaning the uppershaft, and re-inserting the rongeur into the patient to removeadditional bone tissue material. In addition, one skilled in the artwill appreciate that some of the steps can be modified or are otherwiseoptional.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made in the present inventionwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. Moreover,the improved bone screw assemblies and related methods of use need notfeature all of the objects, advantages, features and aspects discussedabove. Thus, for example, those skilled in the art will recognize thatthe invention can be embodied or carried out in a manner that achievesor optimizes one advantage or a group of advantages as taught hereinwithout necessarily achieving other objects or advantages as may betaught or suggested herein. In addition, while a number of variations ofthe invention have been shown and described in detail, othermodifications and methods of use, which are within the scope of thisinvention, will be readily apparent to those of skill in the art basedupon this disclosure. It is contemplated that various combinations orsubcombinations of these specific features and aspects of embodimentsmay be made and still fall within the scope of the invention.Accordingly, it should be understood that various features and aspectsof the disclosed embodiments can be combined with or substituted for oneanother in order to form varying modes of the discussed bone screwassemblies. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover themodifications and variations of this invention provided that they comewithin the scope of the appended claims or their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A rongeur comprising: a handle; a lower shaftoperably connected to the handle; an upper shaft slidable relative tothe lower shaft; and a locking mechanism configured to couple anddecouple the upper shaft from the lower shaft, the locking mechanismbeing positioned beneath the lower shaft; wherein the upper shaft has alongitudinal axis and comprises an internal storage cavity for receivingbone tissue material and an internal plunger mechanism with a fingerhold, wherein the internal plunger mechanism extends substantially alongthe longitudinal axis, wherein the finger hold is actuated independentlyfrom the handle, wherein the lower shaft includes a raised distalportion, wherein the internal plunger mechanism is slidable along thelongitudinal axis and is configured to push out bone tissue materialfrom the internal storage cavity, wherein the raised distal portionserves as one end of a jaw mechanism, and wherein the upper shaftincludes a channel formed through an outer surface of the upper shaft,wherein the internal plunger is received within the upper shaft suchthat a portion of the internal plunger extends through the channel. 2.The rongeur of claim 1, wherein the raised distal portion of the lowershaft and a distal portion of the upper shaft form the jaw mechanism. 3.The rongeur of claim 1, wherein the storage cavity has a width ofbetween about 4 mm to 8 mm.
 4. The rongeur of claim 1, wherein thestorage cavity has a length of between about 36 mm to about 44 mm. 5.The rongeur of claim 1, wherein a distal end of the internal plungermechanism is positioned adjacent the internal storage cavity.
 6. Therongeur of claim 1, wherein the finger hold of the internal plungermechanism is located on the upper shaft and is substantially proximateto the handle to allow for one handed operation of the internal plungermechanism and the handle.
 7. The rongeur of claim 6, wherein the fingerhold is positioned within a channel that extends along a length of theupper shaft.
 8. The rongeur of claim 7, wherein the channel extendsalong a longitudinal axis of the upper shaft.
 9. The rongeur of claim 1,wherein the upper shaft including the internal storage cavity andinternal plunger mechanism is detachable from the lower shaft.
 10. Therongeur of claim 1, wherein the upper shaft is operably connected to thelower shaft via the locking mechanism.
 11. A rongeur comprising: ahandle having a front actuating portion and a back portion; a lowershaft operably connected to the handle; an upper shaft slidable relativeto the lower shaft; and a locking mechanism configured to couple anddecouple the upper shaft from the lower shaft, the locking mechanismbeing positioned beneath the lower shaft; wherein the upper shaft has alongitudinal axis and includes an internal storage cavity and aninternal plunger mechanism with a finger hold, wherein the internalplunger mechanism extends substantially along the longitudinal axis froma proximal portion to a distal portion of the upper shaft, wherein thelower shaft includes a raised distal portion, wherein the finger hold isactuated independently from the front actuating portion of the handle,wherein the raised distal portion serves as one end of a jaw mechanism,and wherein the upper shaft includes a channel formed through an outersurface of the upper shaft, wherein the internal plunger is receivedwithin the upper shaft such that a portion of the internal plungerextends through the channel.
 12. The rongeur of claim 11, wherein thelocking mechanism includes a knob that can be rotated for securing thelower shaft to the upper shaft.
 13. The rongeur of claim 11, wherein adistal end of the internal plunger mechanism is positioned adjacent aproximal end of the internal storage cavity.
 14. The rongeur of claim11, wherein the lower shaft and the upper shaft form the jaw mechanismfor removing bone tissue material.
 15. The rongeur of claim 11, whereinthe upper shaft including the internal storage cavity and the internalplunger mechanism is attachable and detachable from the lower shaft.